IBM names former Weather Co. chief as Watson's new boss

1of3**COMMERCIAL IMAGE** In this photo taken by Feature Photo Service for IBM: Today IBM announced it has closed the acquisition of The Weather Company's Product and Technology Businesses. The Weather Company CEO David Kenny assumes leadership of the IBM Watson platform business. (Jon Simon/Feature Photo Service for IBM)Photo: JON SIMON

3of3FILE - In this Aug. 5, 2014 file photo, IBM CEO Virginia Rometty speaks during the US Africa Business Forum in Washington. Rometty was the sixth highest paid female CEO in 2014, according to a study carried out by executive compensation data firm Equilar and The Associated Press. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)Photo: Jacquelyn Martin, STF

SAN FRANCISCO - IBM says former Weather Co. CEO David Kenny will be the new boss for Watson, the "Jeopardy"-winning "cognitive computing" service that's a central element of CEO Virginia Rometty's campaign to find new revenue for the struggling tech giant.

Watson is a computing system that uses machine-learning and natural-language skills to analyze and find trends in data from a wide variety of sources. IBM has been promoting Watson and related technology as a powerful tool for use in health care, retailing and other industries.

The Armonk, N.Y.-based company announced last year that it was buying the Weather Co., including its websites, apps and data platform, for an undisclosed sum. The cable-TV Weather Channel was not part of the deal and is continuing to operate independently.

Analysts say IBM is hoping to leverage the Weather Co.'s vast trove of climate data as well as its Internet platform, which delivers weather forecasts via free consumer apps along with more extensive services sold to airlines, insurance companies and other businesses.

IBM said Kenny will oversee the Watson business and related partnerships with outside developers who can build software that uses Watson's technology. Michael Rhodin, who previously led the Watson unit, will move to a job developing new business uses for Watson.

Rometty has vowed to increase IBM's revenue from new types of commercial technology, including cloud computing and data analytics, because its mainstay hardware and services businesses are no longer growing. The company reported this month that its overall revenue for the last three months of 2015 was down for the 15th consecutive quarter.

IBM's board has backed Rometty's efforts. The company disclosed last week that she will receive a $4.5 million performance bonus in addition to her $1.6 million salary for 2015. She received a $3.6 million bonus in 2014.